Sanju Samson was part of India’s T20 World Cup 2024 squad, but he didn’t get a chance to play any of the eight matches for the Rohit Sharma-led side in the 20-team tournament staged in the West Indies and USA from June 1 to 29. The 29-year-old wicketkeeper-batter, who scored a century for India in the third T20I against Bangladesh on October 12 in Hyderabad, during a recent interview with Vimal Kumar, revealed he was in line to play in the summit clash against South Africa at Kensington Oval in Barbados on June 29, but missed out on the place in the playing XI due to tactical reasons.
Samson said he wanted to play in the final match, but Indian skipper Rohit Sharma made him understand why he was left out. The Kerala-based cricketer was touched by Rohit’s grand gesture for him and reserved ultimate praise for him by saying that he made a special place in his heart because of his act.
“Mai Rohit bhai ko genuinely bahut respect karta hoon, bachpan se respect karta hoon. Jaisa maine bola jab mai 5 saal ke baad comeback kiya tha tab Rohit bhai ka call aya tha mujhe ki chal dinner par chalte hai. Toh tab se mere ko laga yaar aisa banda soch raha hai, ek naye ladke ke barey mein toh, there has to be some quality in him. Toh tb se main unko chupchaap follow karta hoon. Main unse baatein jyada nahi karta leadership ke barey mein, batting mein barey mein karta hoon. Magar main dur rehkar unko sab follow karta hoon ki vo kaise youngsters se baat kar rahe hai, kaise coaches se baat kar rahe hai, kaise ladko se pyaar se kaam nikalwa rahe hai. Like Rohit bhai respect aur pyaar se log unke liye kaam karte hai Indian team mein. Unhone ek bahut pyaar develop kiya hai dusro ke saath. Vo waise work karwane wale leader hai, toh mujhe laga yaar ki main bhi aise he wala hoon, mere aur unme bahut similarities hai (“I genuinely respect Rohit bhai a lot; I have respected him since childhood. As I said, when I made a comeback after 5 years, I got a call from Rohit bhai asking me to come for dinner. So since then I felt that a person who is thinking about a new boy has some great qualities. So that’s why I follow him silently. I don’t talk to him much about leadership; I talk about batting. But I stay far away and follow him to see how he is talking to youngsters, how he is talking to coaches, and how he is getting work done from boys through love. People work for him with respect and love in the Indian team. He has developed a lot of love for others. He is a leader who gets work done like that, and I felt that I am also like him; there are a lot of similarities between me and him)."
“Dil mein itni badi jagah kab banayi unhone jab final (T20 World Cup) chal raha tha apna. Final ka subah tha Barbados mein, toh mera chance bann raha tha khelne ka. Mere ko taiyaar rehne bola tha, toh mai taiyaar tha. Toss se pehle decide kiya ki nahi we will go with the same team aisa bola. Warm-up chal raha tha toh Rohit bhai mere ko side mein lekar gaye aur mere ko smjhane lage ki mai aisa decision kyu le raha hoon. Maine bola Rohit bhai mai samajhta hoon, match khelte hai, fir baat karenge. Match jeetenge uske baad baat krna aap abhi isme dhyan do. Bole nahi nahi. Fir vo gaye chal theek hai bol ke aur 1 minute ke baad fir aaye aur bole ki nahi tu mere ko mann mein bahut kuch bol raha hai aisa lag raha hai. Tu khush nahi hai, tere ko kuch hai mann mein (He made a big place in my heart when the final (T20 World Cup) was going on. It was the morning of the final in Barbados, so I was in line to be part of the playing XI. I was told to be ready, so I was ready. Before the toss, it was decided that India would go with the same team. When the warm-up was going on, Rohit bhai took me aside and started making me understand why he took the decision. I said, Rohit bhai, I understand. Let us play the match; we will talk later. We should talk after winning the match; you should concentrate on this for now. He said no, no. Then he went away, saying that it’s okay, and after a minute he came back and said that no, it seems that you are saying a lot of things to me in your mind. You are not happy, you have something in your mind)."
“Maine bola as a player definitely mere ko khelna he tha, bachpan se chahta tha ki yaha pe aake karu kuch apke liye… Mere ko aisa ek regret rahega ki apke jaise leader k sath ek final nahi khel paya World Cup ka. Ye mere dil mein ek regret rahegi ki mai Rohit Sharma jaise captain ke sath ek World Cup final miss kar gaya, vo mere life mein rahega, maine aisa unko bola ((I said, as a player, I definitely wanted to play; since childhood, I wanted to come here and do something for you… I will have a regret that I could not play a World Cup final with a leader like you. I will have a regret in my heart that I missed a World Cup final with a captain like Rohit Sharma; that will remain in my life, I told him this)."
“Agar main unki jagah hota, World Cup jaisi itni badi cheej chal rahi hai aur final chal raha hai aur final se pehele ek team mein aapne decision change kiya hai ki ek ladke ko aap nahi khila rahe hai. Aap Us ladke ko jo nahi khilaya uske sath aap 10 minute bita rahe ho, toss se just pehle ki yaar mai usko smjhau ki mai decision kyu le raha hoon aur vo 10 minute unhone mere ko diya World Cup final toss se pehle aur fir vo toss karne gaye tb mujhe pata chal gaya tha ki iss bande mein to kuch alag he quality hai.
“Mai hota unki jagah toh mai sochta yaar final chal raha hai Sanju, he khel rahe hai unke barey mein soch ya toh tu apni batting ke barey mei soch, Sanju ko mai baad mein smjha dunga. Unhone vo sab nahi dekha, unhone bola us time mein Sanju ko smjhana hai ki bhai maine decision kyu liya hai tab unhone mere dil ke andar aisi jagah le li hai vo jo lifetime rehne wali hai," he added.
India defeated South Africa by seven runs in the T20 World Cup 2024 final to end the 11-year-long wait for an ICC title. Rohit finished as the leading run scorer for India in the tournament, and he also became the third Indian captain to win an ICC trophy.
Comments
0 comment